Mother Dearest
by Hawki
Summary: Oneshot: Parents had to die in order for their children to come into their own.


**Mother Dearest**

I know that in entering this place, I may have come to die.

The Temple of the Firstborn. The oldest structure in the world. The birthplace of the nephalem, according to stories of old. The origin of our ancestors, their blood still running through our veins. It is said to have been built as monument to the new life angels and demons created. Now, it is the centre of death. The eye of the storm that has engulfed our world. It is stained by the blood of man and demon alike, and some of it my own. And here, in its centre, in this place of darkness and depravity, she sits. Lilith. Mother of Sanctuary, Daughter of Hatred, once banished into the Void, now seated upon a throne of blood and sinew. It lies out before her, like a carpet extending from a seat of power. I stop, my feet just before the touch of its blood. Far enough away from this demon that if she were to attack, I could see it coming. Not so far that I cannot see her eyes, shining in the dark.

"_Oh child, you have come," _she whispers. _"Do you seek forgiveness for your sins?"_

Her voice echoes throughout this chamber, even if her lips remain unmoving. If anything, the voice comes from the chamber itself. It comes from stone, and echoes through time. It cuts through the air, and cuts through my body. Like being stabbed with a thousand nails, leaving no piece of flesh unmarred.

"_Come closer, child, so that I may see you."_

I clutch my staff. Her words sound like honey, though I know I am already in her hive. I have fought her servants, burning flesh and freezing bone.

"_Do you disobey me?" _Something flickers in the demon's eyes. _"Would you deny your mother?"_

Mother. The word cuts deeper than I suspect even Lilith knows. Once, in the wastes of Kehjistan, I had a mother. She who was once visited by the Zann Esu, and promptly sold me into their care for gold. My mother gave me a new life. Gave me the chance to find my purpose. My mother is someone who I would kill without a second thought if I ever saw her again.

"_Or perhaps you are here for more. Perhaps you are here to kill me."_

Lilith knows the answer. Lilith is someone who I would likewise remove from this world if given the chance. But seeing her smile in the dark, her barbed teeth reflecting what little light reaches this place, she knows the same truth that I do. I am but a mortal. And she is one of the most powerful demons in this world, even without the army of depraved cultists she has unleashed upon it.

"_What is your name, child?" _the demon whispers.

"Sheba," I say. "Of the Zann Esu."

"_Esu." _Lilith rises to her feet and looks upon me with curiosity, and for a moment, sorrow. _"Esu. One of the first. Born to angel and demon, both now lost to history. I can almost see her in you…" _The look in her eyes changes, and the sorrow is replaced with contempt. _"But look at you now. A thousand generations and more, your birthright reclaimed twice, and lost each time. You could stride Creation like gods, and yet, you hide in the shadows. Too afraid of the sun to claim what should be yours." _She smirks. _"You entered with two others. Where are they?"_

I say nothing. Truth is, I'm wondering myself. I last saw them fighting the demons that roamed this place. The possibility I must confront is that I am alone in this place. That I am to face Lilith alone.

I still remain silent as she rises to her feet. The blood and sinew withdraws from my feet – less a carpet, more a gown. It moves as if it has a mind of its own, so that as Lilith takes her first steps towards me, it runs over the ground behind her. Blood has stained the stone where it once lay. Blood is at my feet. And my rapidly beating heart reminds me that I too may join it. That a fourth body may lie in this place, joining the three corpses on the three pillars here. I know not how long the bodies have been here. But I know they did not die well.

"_I know what lies in your heart," _Lilith whispers. _"Fear. Hatred. These are potent forces, but they will avail you nothing."_

I can't help but take a step back – I'm already fighting the urge to run. "They availed me against your servants."

"_I care not for the lamb's cry when it meets the butcher's knife. The shepherd cannot fall. You are scattered, divided, leaderless. The world Inarius and I created is rotting to its core. Heaven hides from the dark as it always has, and my kind remain slave to Tathamet's curse. Fury, undirected – nothing created, everything destroyed in unthinking bloodlust." _Lilith stops ten feet away from me. Slowly, she extends a hand outwards. Each nail a claw, its palm as smooth as silk, its arm long and graceful. _"You are lost," _she said. _"Let me return you to the light, Sheba, one who bears Esu's name. Let me return you to what you were meant to be. Join me, so I may deliver you to glory."_

I am tempted. Her words are still like honey, and so close to her lips, her eyes, the honey is atop my tongue. It enters me. It gives me a sense of…warmth. Not power, warmth. Warmth so rare in a world that has lost its fire. Slowly, I reach out to her. My small, weathered hand, ready to be taken up by a parent. To be brought close to her breast, so that I may be safe in its embrace. To feed upon my mother's milk, and grow strong under her care. Slowly…slowly…

I draw back, and Lilith hisses.

"The world is broken," I say. "But you seek to reduce what's left to ashes."

I cannot follow her. My hand nearly touched hers, but my hand…there is so much blood on it. Some of it from demons. Some of it from my fellow Men. Some from an angel…he, chained in Hell, who I granted the mercy of death.

"_I am your mother, child. Without me, you are lost."_

I take a breath. "Parents must die for their children to live. So said Inarius before I freed him."

There's a small change in Lilith's eyes. A darkness. A fire. Then, moving with supernatural speed, she lets out a scream and reaches out with clawed hand. I scream, as terror takes me – vindication cannot overcome fear, all of the time. But it never reaches me, as an axe embeds itself in Lilith's shoulder. She staggers back and looks at it with casual disdain. But it has given me the chance I need to gather some distance. To join my companions as they enter this chamber. One, a Northman of the Dreadlands, who carries more blades than I can count. The other, a child of Scosglen, in whose heart lies nature's fury. No words are spoken between us. None have to in this place.

"_And so the three confront the one."_

Let Lilith still speaks.

"_Three called to three," _she whispers, gazing at each of the columns, and the bodies that remain suspended from them. _"And now three again return." _She looks at the Northman. _"Child of Bul-Kathos_." The Druid. _"Vasily_." And at last, myself. _"Esu_." She casually rips the axe out of her shoulder and tosses it over to us. _"Three children, walking in the shadows of giants. All come to this place where their ancestors were born." _Her fangs form a smile. _"All come here to die."_

"Only you shall die today, witch," one of my companions says.

Lilith isn't paying attention. _"Three and the one," _she whispers. _"Once, long ago, in a land far from here, three confronted the Lord of Terror beneath the cold earth. Do your stories tell you what happened to them? How one of the three became the one, and how he was confronted by five?" _She extends out a hand again, and I know it's not just to me, but to all of us. _"Come with me, my children. Let me save you. For I am this world's last hope. I saved your ancestors from Inarius. And now, I can save you from yourselves_."

None of us speak. For we are together. And there is no point conversing with a demon. Hence, I summon a ball of flame to my side. The Northman takes out a pair of axes. The druid is already changing his form into a bear. And Lilith, still standing there, lets out a sigh.

"_Come, children. Let me free you."_

She lets out a screech and charges at us.

Mother, or children.

At least one of us will die this day.


End file.
